Bible Study: Sunday, June 30, 2013

NASHVILLE (BP) -- This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, LifeWay publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups.

This week's Bible study is adapted from the Bible Studies For Life curriculum.

Bible Passages: Exodus 26:30-33; 29:43-46; 40:34-38

Discussion Question: What has God done in your life to exhibit His presence?

Food for Thought:

Most cell phone apps cost little to nothing. Pandora, Skype and ESPN ScoreCenter each offer great service at no charge. That's music to our ears, but there's a whole other world out there when it comes to apps, one in particular available only to the super rich. VIP Black offers users elite access to a variety of venues at a whopping price of $999, as of December 2012. The catch is you can only use VIP Black after verifying your personal net worth of $1 million or more.

Conversely, our God and Creator of the universe allows people VIP access to Himself that outperforms VIP Black any day. Throughout Scripture, God goes to incredible lengths to connect and build a relationship with humanity.

A read through the Old Testament reveals God pursuing His people time and again. In Exodus 26, God took incredible steps to make His presence and glory known. He gave the Israelites a plan to build the tabernacle where He would one day dwell. When the tabernacle was complete, the Israelites had a tangible, intense awareness of God's presence in their lives. That same level of familiarity is available to us today.

We don't always live life with an awareness of God's all-encompassing presence. Instead, we get distracted by non-essentials, by frivolous things and by the worries and stresses of life. That's no way to live. God desires to live in our midst; He desires for us to live in His presence. We were created for something more -- for Someone more. God has given us the blueprint for staying constantly aware of His presence.

Bible Studies for Life

Bible Studies for Life is a family of resources that addresses key issues in the lives of adults, students and kids. Bible Studies for Life has been updated for fall 2013. Visit

www.biblestudiesforlife.com and use it to help you "Connect The Unconnected," "Strengthen Families" and "Disciple People With Wisdom." Free session downloads are available, plus PDFs and videos that explain the improvements made to this Bible study resource.

Other ongoing Bible study options offered by LifeWay for all ages can be found at LifeWay.com/SundaySchool.